Manufacture of gas



(No Model.) .2- Sheets--Sheet 1.

H. M. PIERSON.

MANUPACTURE OP GAS.

ma Nov. 6, 1888.

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N. Femm Phmmhognpvwr. wmingw". n4 c (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

H. M. PIERSON.

MANUPACTURB 0F GAS.' No. 392,458.

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TAR TANK www4 , NITED STATES PATEN rric HENRY M. PIERSON, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

MANUFACTURE. oFV GAS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 392,458, dated November e, ieee.

Application filed February 3. 1888. Serial No. 262,868. (No model.)

y To @ZZ whom it may concern.:

Be it known that I, HENRY M. PIEnsoN, of Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented an Improvement in Manufacturing Gas; and the following is declared to be a full and complete description of the same.

In my present improvements I make use of a generatingfurnace into which incandescent coke is introduced periodically, and it is red up from time to time to intensify the heat by blowing air through it, andsteam is passed through the incandescent fuel and is decomposed and forms a non-luminous or water gas, with which a small quantity of oleant gas is commingled from a small quantity of hydrocarbon liquid supplied into the chamber, the blast of air being shut off during the gas-making operation. The heat and heated gases pass up into a chamber containing retorts, into which retorts bituminous coal is introduced from time to time, and the oleant gas distilled from the 'same passes off to a peculiarly-constructed hydraulic main, in which the tarry products are condensed and pass into tanks,and the gases pass into a retort containing loose refractory material, which retort is also in the retortchamber, and into this retort steam is admitted to combine with the oleant gas and form non-luminous or fuel gas, and the gases from the two sources named pass to one washer and commingle, and the coke, as it is drawn from the respective retorts, is delivered in its incandescent condition into the generating-furnace and the tar is burned to aid in heating the retort-chamber.

By combining in one apparatus the devices y for making non-luminous gas by the two methods named I am enabled to economize the production of non-luminous gas from bituminous coal,and at the same time avoid the risk heretofore existing from the non-luminous gas made from anthracite coal, because such non-luminous gas is of the most deadly character when inhaled and is nearly inodorous, while in the gas made by my improvement there is sufficient olefiant gas present to scent the non-luminous gas and lessen the risk of the same being inhaled without being noticed.

5o v In the drawings I have shown the apparatus especially designed by me for the manufacture of nonluminous gas from bituminous coal, whereinh Figure 1 is a vertical section of most of the apparatus, portions being in elevation. Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section at the line a: a: of Fig. l, and Fig. 3 is a side elevation of a hopper and its carriage.

A represents the generating-furnace, which is of usual character and in which there is an air-tight door, ct, opening into the ash-pit for the removal of ashes, an air-blast pipe, b, with a regulating-gate, b', and a steam-pipe,c, providing for the inlet of air and steam, a throat, d, andgas-tight cover d providing for the admission of fuel.

B represents the retortchamber, which is located above the generating-furnace, the interior of which chamber is connected with the generating-furnace by the throat e, and there is a chimney,D,and tight-fitting valvef Within the same on top ofthe retort-chamber, by which the products of first combustion or heating up are passed on". I

There is an air-blast pipe, b2, having a regulating-gate, b3, and this air-blast pipe is connected to and rises from the pipe b, and its upper end passes around and is continued as a iiue, b4, in the front wall of the retort-chamber B, and air is admitted through this pipe b2 and iiue b4 into the retort-chamber, Where it com bines with the unconsumed gases issuing from the throat e during the heating-up operation,

and the combustion of the said gasesis thereby made perfect or more complete by the additional quantity of air thus admitted.

The retorts g h i la for bituminous coal are of the usual character, and they rest in or against the back wall of the chamber and pass through the front Wall and are provided with ICO TWithin the hydraulic main C and beneath the lower end of each pipe g h 'i' 7c are metal pans or cups .3, and said pans are supported and guided in their position by the pairs of vertical rods 6 7, which are united to said pans and pass up through stuflingboxes in the upper shell of the hydraulic main and are connected at their upper ends by the cross-heads 8,to cach oi' which is connected a rope or chain, 9, which by p reference passes away over a pnllcy to a point easily accessible,where it can be made fast. These pans 5 are iillcd with tar and other suoli products of the distillation of bituminous coal, as is also the bottom ofthe hydraulic main, as hereinafter more `fully deA scribed,and the lower ends of these pipes g,h, i', and la come just above the tar in said pans, and said pans can be elevated by the rods 6 7 and chains 9 until the surface ofthe bottom of said pans comes against thccnd of said pipes and closes them completely. rIhe objcctol'thus closing the ends of the pipes g, h', i', and It is to be able to draw the coke from any oncofthc retorts without risk ofthe gas in the other re tort-s backing up and burning or exploding in the retort that happens to be open.

Connected to the respective ends of the hydraulic main C are the pipes a nf, bent, as shown, to form traps, and opening into the tar-tanks v o; and there are pipes w w' connected to the bottom of said tanks and passing downward and into opposite sides oi' the retortchamber, and said pipes ni w are provided with cocks 10, and within the retort-chamber there are inclined tablesyy. ,lhchot tarry products deposited in the hydraulic main C pass by the pipes u u into the tanks yz: o and by the pipes w w within the retortchamber and are delivered upon the inclined tables y y, for the purposes hereinafter more fully described.

rIhe retort in, which constitutes the salient feature of my invention, is preferably of oval form in cross-section and extends entirely through the retortcha1nbcr,having a cover at cach end, and the same contains loose refractory material, as shown. A pipe, a, connects one end of this retort with the hydraulic main C, and this pipe a simply enters the top of said main. 'Ihere is a pipe, o, connected to the other end of the retort in, and the same passes into and seals within the washer E, and there is a pipe, j), connected to the top of the retortchamber B, which also passes to and seals within the washer E, and there is a pipe, o', passing from the washer E away to a holder. There is a steam-pipe, i', entering the forward end of the retort m, as shown, and a pipe, s,

entering the retort-chamber R, by which a hydrocarbon liquid is conveyed within said chamber. Any number of retorts for bituminous coal may be used.

I have shown rails 1 2, forming a track across the top of the generating-l'urnace, and in Fig. 3 I have shown a hopper or chute, l, and its carriage upon the rails 1 2, by which I discharge the coke from the retorts into the generating-furnace, and in Fig. 2 the chute is shown by dotted lines as capable of discharging the coke from any or all of the retorts without shifting its position.

The operation of carrying on the manufacture of gas is as follows: The generating-furnace is iirst charged with coke or other fuel and iired, and the retorts q h l' k are charged with bituminous coal and sealed. rI`he airblast is then admitted into both generating furnace and retort-chamber by the pipes b and if, and the blowing up is continued until the fuel in the generating-furnace is raised to a point ofincainlescence, the issuing gases meanwhile passing through the throat c into the retort-chamber B, where a perfect combustion takes place in and around the retorts y, h, i, 7:, and m, because of the extra quantity of air entering by the flue b", and the said retorts are heated up to a high temperature and the products of combustion pass away by the chimney D, thecoverfof which had been previously rcmoved. The air is then shut off at the gates b and b, and the cover f closed to its scat, and steam under pressure is admitted into the gencrating-furnaee by the pipe c, and passes through the fire and is decomposed intohydro gen, (IL) about fifty per cent., carbonio oxide, (00,) about i'orty per cent., and about ten per cent. of carbonio acid, ((10,), the constituents of watergas. At this time a hydrocarbon liquid is admitted through the pipe s into the heated retort-chamber and becomes converted into olefiant gus, and as the water-gas passes into and through the retort-chamber an element of carbon from said olefiant gas combines with the oxygen of the carbonio acid, ((30.3) forming CO, or carbonio oxide, thereby doubling its volume and reducing all, or nearly all, the gases to hydrogen and carbonio oxide or non-luminous gas, which passes by the pipe p from the retort-chamber over into the washer E and by the pipe o to any suitable holder. As water-gas is practically odorless, it is difficult to detect its presence in an apartment or when escaping from pipes, and I provide for a slight surplus of oleiiant gas from the conversion of the acid in order that the same may comminglc with the non-luminous gas and impart to it a scent or distinctive odor, which will make it possible to detect its presence and lessen the risk of the gas being inhaled without being noticed. XVhilc this operation of blowing np the generating-furnace and making water-gas is being carried on and simultaneously therewith the bituminous coal in the heated retorts g h t' l; is undergoing distillation, and the rich coalgas (illuminating-gas) and vapors, oils, and other products evolved from this distillation pass by the pipes g It z k' up and into the hydraulic main C. The heavier products of decomposition and distillation-such as tar, oils, &c.-are retained in the hydraulic main and gradually displace the water,which the heat vaporizes,while the gases pass out (sec arrows in Figs. 1 and 2) by the pipe n downwardly IIO into the oval-shaped retort m, containing refractorymaterial, in which it meets the incoming steam from the pipe r,which steam, as it passes through the highly-heated retort in company with the illuminatinggas, is decomposed by the carbon of the illuminating-gas d that receives the gas passing by the pipe p.

' Meanwhile the hot tar, oils, and heavy products of combustion deposited in the hydraulic main fill the pans 5 and iiow over and ll the lower part of the dydraulic main to a level with the edge of the pans, and the surplus overflows by the trapped pipes u u into the tar-tanks o t and fills the vertical pipes w w', and during the heating-up process in the generating-furnace A and retort-chamber B, I discharge some of this hot tar, Snc., through the cocks 10 within the retort-chamber onto the inclined tables 7, where the tar burns by the excess of air purposely admitted by the pipe b2 and flue b4, and this greatly assists the heating-up process, bringingthe retorts up to a very high temperature, besides effecting economy in the-gasmaking operation. The coke contained in these retorts g h t' 7c at the completion of these operations is discharged by means` of the hopper t into the generating-furnace A through the throat d to replenish its fire, after which these retorts are recharged with bituminous coal, the coke in the generating-furnace is blown up to incandescence, and the gasmaking operations repeated, as heretofore described.

My method differs essentially from those in use previously in that while I am blowing up the generating-furnace to incandescence and afterward making non-luminous gas from the decomposition of steam and the addition of oleant gas made from hydrocarbon liquid I am also decomposing bituminous coal and making illuminating-gas, which I convert by steam into non-luminous gas in a separate retort containing refractory material, the coke left from this last portion of the process being utilized as a fuel afterward in the generating-furnace.

I claim as my inventionl. The combined methods herein specified of making heating-gases from bituminous coal, consisting in distilling the coal and passing the resulting gas through a heated retort containing refractory materialand into which steam is admitted and passing the coke from such retorts in an incandescent condition into a generating-furnace, blowing up such coke to intensi'fy the combustion, and simultaneously heating the retorts by the escaping products and then passing steam through the incandescent coke when the supply of air is shut oft', so as to decompose the steam in the presence of the carbon of the coke and form a heatinggas, and conveying the heating-gases from the two sources to a holder, where they are mixed, substantially as specified.

2. The combined methods herein specified of making heating-gases from bituminous coal, consisting in distilling the coal and passing the resulting gas through a heated retort containing refractory material and into which steam is admitted and passing the coke from such retorts in an incandescent condition into a generating-furnace, blowing up such coke to in tensify the combustion, and simultaneously heating the retorts by the escaping products and then passing steam through the incandescent coke when the supply of air is shut off, so as to decompose the steam in the presence of tho carbon of the coke and form a heatinggas, and introducing liquid hydrocarbon, the gas from which combines with any carbonio acid present and forms carbonio oxide, and also gives to the non-luminous gas an odor, for the purposes set forth, and conveying the heatinggases from the two sources to a holder, where they are mixed, substantially as specified.

Signed by me this 20th day of January, A. D. 1888.

II. M. PIERSON. Witnesses:

GEO. T. PINCKNEY, HAROLD SERRELL. 

